Diaspirin crosslinked
hemoglobin (
DCLHb; Baxter Healthcare Corp, Deerfield, IL) is
hemoglobin-based
oxygen carrier which, in our laboratory, improved hemodynamic parameters in a rat
burn shock model. Our objective was to compare the effects on hemodynamic parameters and
metabolic acidosis of
resuscitation with different doses of fresh blood (FB) vs
DCLHb. Male Wistar rats (200 to 250 g), surgically prepared for an acute study, were randomly assigned to one of five treatment groups. (n = 8): I.
SHAM (not burned, not resuscitated), II.
DCLHb 2 ml/kg/% Total Body Surface Area (TBSA)
burn and 2 ml/kg/% TBSA
burn of Lactated Ringers (LR), III.
DCLHb 1 ml/kg/% TBSA
burn and 1 ml/kg/% TBSA
burn of LR IV. FB 2 ml/kg/% TBSA
burn and 2 ml/kg/% TBSA
burn of LR V. FB 1 ml/kg/% TBSA
burn and 1 ml/kg/% TBSA
burn of LR After placement of
indwelling catheters, the following baseline hemodynamic values were obtained mean arterial pressure (MAP), cardiac output (CO), stroke volume (SV), systemic vascular resistance (SVR) and base excess (BE). The animals were immediately intravenously resuscitated after receiving a 30% scald
burn and were followed for 6 hours.
Resuscitation was based on the Parkland formula. Blood was obtained from donor male Wistar rats. The animals were euthanized at 6 hours. MAP remained within normal range in all groups. The SVR, CO, SV and BE were normalized earlier in the LR-
DCLHb groups when compared to the LR-FB groups (p < 0.05). Early
resuscitation with
DCLHb is superior to FB in improving hemodynamics in this model. There appears to be a direct relationship between dose and effect with the use of
DCLHb.
DCLHb could be useful in decreasing
resuscitation fluid requirements in acute
burns without compromising general tissue perfusion.